Weatherford raises job cuts target to 11,000

BAAR, Switzerland -- Weatherford International has announced a fresh wave of job cuts in response to continuing weak market conditions.

The news came as the service company announced a net loss for the second quarter of $489 million, representing a loss of $0.63 per share. Revenue for the quarter was $2.39 billion as compared with $2.79 billion in the first quarter and $3.71 billion in the second quarter of 2014.

Weatherford previously planned to reduce its headcount by 10,000, a task which was largely completed during the second quarter.

But on Wednesday, the company said the workforce reduction target had been revised upward “with the increase principally in the U.S with a focus on support positions.”

Weatherford closed three of its manufacturing and service facilities during the second quarter. It also closed over 60 operating facilities across North America through the first half of the year, and it plans to close 30 more by the end of the year, the company said in a statement accompanying its earnings.

Bernard J. Duroc-Danner, Weatherford’s chairman, president and CEO, said market conditions wouldn’t “improve significantly” throughout the remainder of the year.

He added, “Based on our 2015 reduction in force actions, we now expect annualized savings of over $700 million. As we emerge gradually from this industry down cycle, we expect to operate as a much leaner, more efficient and streamlined organization."